The present invention relates generally to a bagging device and, more specifically, to a device for use in transferring contaminated material through a wall from a contaminated chamber to a clean chamber from which contaminated gas and dust are substantially excluded.
The present invention affords improvements over the bag-out port design disclosed in the co-pending patent application entitled IMPROVED MATERIAL BAGGING DEVICE by inventors Charles G. Wach, Robert E. Nelson and Stephen B. Brak. Bag-out ports are of considerable importance in the nuclear industry where contaminated substances must be transferred from one chamber to another without the release of contaminated gas or material into the atmosphere or immediate area. The transfer of contaminated materials is complicated due to high levels of radiation which mandate the use of remote manipulators.
Prior art bag-out ports typically include a port structure to which a plastic bag is secured by hose clamps. After contaminated material is deposited in the plastic bag and port structure, the hose clamp is released using a screwdriver and a new plastic bag is then stretched over the port. This bagging operation is difficult to perform with remote manipulators, time consuming and expensive.
The above referenced co-pending application of Wach, et al, discloses a structure which provides for the continuous dispensing of a pleated pliable tube from a rigid support cartridge positioned in an aperture of a wall separating the two chambers. The pliable tube is sealable at one end, closing the opening between the chamber. Material deposited in the pliable tube is sealed within a portion which is severed from the remainder of the pliable tube while maintaining a sealed relationship between the two chambers. Waste remnants of the cartridge and pliable bag are deposited in the contaminated chamber.